** Property Management is considered an ‘Essential Service’ during the ‘Stay at Home’ order. Our physical office is closed, however we are still here to conduct/coordinate emergency maintenance, facilitate payments, move ins and move outs, help landlords in need of property management, and other critical tasks. People need a safe place to live, and Property Management is at the forefront of facilitating that. **

We understand these are turbulent times. If you have a specific question or are concerned about your ability to pay rent, please reach out to us ASAP to discuss options. Just like you, we are taking this day by day, attempting to plan a few steps ahead.

Smart Pad Policy Updates

Our physical office location is closed.

No unnecessary interior inspections are being conducted.

Lock Box move in’s are being offered at no additional cost.

We are waiting 3 days after a move out to conduct our rental turn/cleaning.

Emergency Maintenance only.

All payments must be made online (our physical office is closed)

We will not require vacating residents to show their rental unit to new tenants prior to your move out.

Rent Payment FAQ

Rent is still due on the 1st, late on the 5th.

No, the State/Federal Government did not pass a law which forgives past due rent or allows a Tenant to not pay rent if that Tenant is capable of doing so.

Yes, multiple Local/State/Federal policies will prevent a Tenant from being evicted due to non payment of rent through the end of April.

Yes, we will absolutely work with Tenants who are unable to pay rent, in the form of payment plans and late fee waivers. That being said, you must pursue paid sick leave, unemployment benefits, and other resources.

Rental Assistance Resources

Multiple State/Federal policies require employers to offer you both paid sick leave as well as paid family medical leave. Whether you are personally sick, a family member is sick, you are unable to work because of child care etc.

This is probably the first question that pops up with most landlords, How do we screen the tenants for placement. So here is the breakdown of our exact process.

The first piece of information we need to know is what their monthly income is. We need this information because it is our policy that their income is 3x that of the homes rent. We verify their income with their last 3 consecutive pay stubs.

Next we do a bit of investigation to find out what their rental history is. We first look to see if they have any previous evictions or outstanding debts owed to a previous landlord. We then look at their previous rental history. We are checking to make sure they do not have any negative comments, ie: smoking in the home, trashing the place.

All of these are major red flags

The next piece is a background check and credit screening. During the background check we are looking to if they have a criminal history, are on the sex offender list or on the national terrorist watch list. All of these are major red flags and most will disqualify a possible tenant. We then take a look at their credit history. We want to see that they pay their bills on time and have generally good or great credit.

Lastly we use good ol’ common sense. While we are showing the prospective tenant the home we have a series of conversations. Through these conversations we are getting a better picture for who they are and what type of renter they are. We ask questions such as, why are they looking for a rental? What does their rental history look like? What do they do for a living?

Lastly we do a nationwide criminal search

Here are some of the specific reports we run on each applicant. Like I explained before we run their FICO credit score. We pull their rental history from the Experian Rent Bureau. We then do a nationwide eviction search. Lastly we do a nationwide criminal search which covers Megan’s Law, Registered Sex Offenders check and OFAC Terrorist Watch List check.

As long as they meet all of these criteria we then place them in your home. If you have any questions or concerns about anything you have seen here today, please give us a call!

Hello, let’s talk about our new Resident Benefits Package and what it entails. This program not only benefits the resident living in your home but it has some great benefits for you as well. The major benefit for you is the added value you/ we are giving your residents.

Automatically delivered HVAC filters provided by Filter Easy.

Here are the package details. Automatically delivered HVAC filters provided by Filter Easy, they will deliver a new filter every 3 months. This will eliminate the resident having to first remember to change the filter and second it will ensure the correct size filter is in your furnace. Furnaces are one of the top items that need maintenance in a home and it’s usually because the filters have not been regularly changed.

We will report to the Experian Rent Bureau to help build good rental credit history for your residence. This is our way of saying thank you for paying your rent in a timely manner and thank you for taking care of the home.

We use a state of the art online platform which we give our residents access to. The resident can use this portal to pay their rent, submit maintenance requests, view their lease or rental agreement and much more. There is no charge for them to use this platform however the third party payment vendors may have a fee. The fact that we don’t add a fee is unheard of in the property management business.

Instead of a fee here and a fee there all the fees are rolled into one!

We have a 24-7 emergency maintenance line for any emergencies that may arise with your home. If a water pipe should burst or a septic line should fail the resident can always get a hold of us.

We require all of our tenants to have 100,000 of liability insurance coverage. We are including this insurance in the Resident Benefit Package to make logistics easier for the resident. Instead of a fee here and a fee there all the fees are rolled into one. The residence are allowed to acquire their own insurance if they would prefer they just need to provide us with the appropriate documentation. Just as a side note this insurance is not their renters insurance this insurance covers the dwelling in the event of a loss.

If you have any questions or concerns feel free to reach out at any time.

Hey there it’s Charissa here! I want to talk to you all about a new package we are rolling out called “ The Resident Benefit Package. You’ll notice some of these items we already currently offer. The reason for the package is to combine all of our fees into one package versus a fee here and a fee there. You will also notice that some of these great items come at no extra charge! Here are the details.

No more guessing the size or accidentally forgetting all together to replace the HVAC filter!

The first item is HVAC filter replacements sent directly to your home. As it is your obligation to replace the furnace filters we have found a convenient solution to help you. We have contracted with Filter Easy to deliver a new filter to your door every 3 months. These filters will have a date stamp on them and you are given a week to get them installed. No more guessing the size or accidentally forgetting all together to replace the HVAC filter!

We report to the Experian Rent Bureau for you. This helps you establish a positive rental history which will help you with all future home rentals or purchases!

You also have access to our state of the art online platform. Through the platform you can pay your rent at no extra charge from us (there may be a third party charge), submit maintenance requests, view your lease or rental agreement and much more.

Experian Rent Bureau helps you establish a positive rental history!

We have also given you access to a 24-7 emergency line. This line if for those occasional times when a water pipe bursts or a septic line fails. Just know we are here for you in an emergency.

The last item is $100,000 of Liability Insurance. This insurance is separate from your renters insurance in this insurance covers the dwelling (in case of a loss) not your belongings. You can acquire this insurance on your own and you will need to provide us with the declaration page.

As always if you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out at any time!

Let’s talk about how to make your home ready to become a rental home. First Smart Pad Property Management can facilitate any and all ‘Make Ready’ cleaning and repairs if you would like us to. We have a full time in house licensed and bonded contractor who can make all the necessary repairs that might be needed. He can facilitate projects such as painting, caulking, flooring, upgrading door knobs, tearing down outside structures, etc. If it is a larger project say like a new roof or concrete work we also have you covered. We have a comprehensive list of licensed and bonded contractors who can facilitate any need your home may have. Once you feel your house is cleaned, repaired and rent ready you will then turn it over to us. Our in house contractor will complete a Walk Through Survey to make sure the home is up to our standards. If there is any additional work that he feels needs to be completed he will list them on the Walk Through Survey.

The Rental Turn is the term used to describe the time in between one tenant and the next. During this time period Smart Pad Property Management will facilitate any and all cleaning and repairs. This way you can sit back and relax and let us take care of all the work. We will keep tight correspondence with you during this time so you are involved in any and all decisions that need to be made concerning your property.
Next I will break down the detailed cleaning list. First thing is you will need to remove any and all personal items. Any personal items that are left behind we will not be held responsible for nor will we hold the residence responsible. Unfortunately any personal items that are left behind will eventually be destroyed due to time and or use. Please remove all garbage from inside and outside the home. Try not to leave any items behind such as hangers, plungers, hoses, ladders, etc. We truly believe that a clean and well kept home will be treated as such by the prospective tenant. Your home will also rent much faster if it is clean and well kept and the quality of tenant will increase.

If your home has a generator, fireplace, hot tub, etc. we do recommend you leave any manuals you might have in a drawer in the home. If you have a garage door opener we will need two garage door remotes. If you need any help with painting let us know, we can help. Every new rental will have a Smart Key System installed. The benefit for you is once you pay for the system initially there will never be another charge to you again and the system will pay for itself after one turn. The benefit to the resident is that if they ever lose their key or lock themselves out we can quickly fix either issue thus getting them back into their home quickly and safely.

Any and all stairs and railings need to be inspected for soundness, they should be sturdy.

Areas to clean inside the home include the walls they need to be scrubbed where necessary. If you have a wood burning fireplace it needs to be cleaned out and the chimney will need to be cleaned and inspected as well. If the carpets are still in good condition they will need to be cleaned and if you have pets you will need to add an enzyme treatment. Any and all flooring needs to be cleaned. Light covers, outlets, switches and fixtures need to be wiped down and repaired if necessary. Any and all stairs and railings need to be inspected for soundness and cleaned. Replace the batteries in all of the smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors (The tenant is responsible for replacing the batteries after this point). If you have a doorbell make sure it is in working order. Any window coverings that will be staying in the home need to be clean and in working order. The windows need to be cleaned inside and out and don’t forget the tracks. Any window that opens must have a screen on it. Check all the window and door locks to make sure they are in good functioning order. Lastly make sure all entry doors and the garage door are in proper working order. If they are not they need to be repaired or replaced.

Let’s move onto the bathroom and kitchen areas. If your shower requires a curtain rod you will need to provide one. Any place you have tile check the grout and make sure it is still in good condition. This next one is something that most of us like to ignore but truly we shouldn’t, caulking. Take a look at all your toilets and tubs and make sure your caulking is looking good and if it isn’t replace it. Check the garbage disposal for proper function. All drains need to have a stopper and should be flowing freely. Check to make sure your toilets are working properly and have no leaks. Each bathroom should have an exhaust fan which is vented properly. Next is the appliances! Check to make sure all of your appliances that will be staying in the home are working properly. The furnace will need to be professionally and we need a receipt for the work completed. All water heaters must have metal earthquake straps on them. The last one I know seems kind of weird but it’s state law.

We have a full time in house licensed and bonded contractor who can make all the necessary repairs that might be needed.

Let’s move onto the exterior of the home. Please remove any decorative yard items, hoses, leaves, pine needles, animal feces. Trim any bushes or trees if they are in need. Pressure wash the outside of your home if it is dirty or mossy and remove any cobwebs. The home needs to have an exterior light by the front and back door. If you have a sprinkler system it may be a good idea to get it all set up so you don’t have to rely on the tenants. Check your roof for soundness and make sure it’s been cleaned along with the gutters. Try to make sure you don’t have any oil or grease stains in the driveway. The reason for this is we want to give the home over to a tenant in the exact condition we hope to get it back in (minus normal wear and tear). Check any gates and fences for soundness and fix any areas that may be questionable.
Ya we are nearing the end of the checklist! Your utilities will need to remain on while the home is vacant. As soon as we find a tenant and hand them the keys we will switch everything over into their name. Any time the home is vacant the utilities will go back into your name. If you have an alarm system it will need to be shut off. We can’t require a tenant to use the system but you never know they may want to use the alarm system. Just have the service canceled but leave the devices installed. The bottom line is it’s the tenants decision. You can cancel your cable/satellite TV at any time.

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to call us at any point in time!

Here is how Smart Pad Property Managements move out procedures work. How do you get the deposit back, that is the burning question on everyone’s mind. Your deposit is subject to the provisions in your lease or management agreement. The first step in the process is to fill out the ‘Notice to Vacate’ form located on our website. How will you get your refund and when. The how depends on how well you clean the home & property and the when is within 21 days of your move out day.Things that may cause you not to receive the full refundable portion of your deposit are: Holes in the walls, Destroyed flooring, painting that needs to be done, etc. Your refund or bill will come to you by mail.

We will be showing your home during your move out period. We will be in the home the entire time during the showing. You will be given 24hrs notice and we will show the home at a reasonable time. We will do our best to work around your schedule as we do not want to be in your way. Please make sure during the showings that your pets are out of the home or secured in a pet crate. If you have an alarm system please disarm the alarm during the time we will be in the home for the showing. Also we ask that no minors are present without an adult in the home.
When should the move out inspection be scheduled? Please schedule this appointment at least 5 days prior to your scheduled move out date. At the time of this inspection you need to be completely vacated from the property and the property needs to be as it was when we turned it over to you. We hope to see no major damage during this inspection. You will need to turn in any and all keys and all the remotes such as the garage door remote. We will also need a forwarding address and current phone number. The reason for the last two items is in case we need to get a hold of you for anything and so we can send you any outstanding bills and your refundable portion of the deposit.

There are two different types of cleaning. First we have the Partial Cleaning List. This list applies to those residents who put down a non-refundable cleaning deposit at the beginning of their lease. For those residents who did not put down this deposit you will need to complete the Full Cleaning List. For the Partial cleaning you will need to do the following in order to get your home ready to move out and to get the full refundable portion of your deposit back. You will need to remove all trash, debris and personal belongings from the home. Please replace any burnt out light bulbs and dead smoke detector/CO2 batteries. Replace the furnace filter if it is time. You will then need to do a surface level cleaning of the home, not a deep cleaning. Vacuum all the carpets and sweep any hard surface flooring. You MUST remove all the trash from the home, this is very important. Any trash left in the home we will need to collect and take to the dump. There will be a fee for our contractor and a dump fee. This will cost you $100 or more depending on how much garbage or belongings are left behind, contractors charge $100+ an hour. Mow and edge the yard, remove any debris (animal feces, leaves, etc.) and weed the flower beds. Sweep or blow off all exterior patios, decks and paved areas. Now you are done!

If you are a candidate for the full cleaning here is a general overview of your cleaning list.You can find the full cleaning list on or website, www.smartpadmanagement.com. You will need to have the carpets professionally cleaned and we will need a copy of the receipt for our records. DO NOT SPACKLE THE WALLS. The reason for this is spackling can often result in us having to go in and do much more repair work thus costing you extra money. We only use licensed and bonded contractors and they can cost around $100-$150 per hour. Please use appropriate cleaners for the surface you are working with. Such as use stainless steal cleaner on stainless steal and tile cleaner on tile. Any damage caused by using the wrong cleaner will come out of your deposit and we want you to get all your money back! The most important thing to us is you return the home to us in the condition we turned it over to you in. Here is a list of items that needs to be cleaned in every room of the house. Mirrors, Closet Shelves and Doors, Clean Walls, Light Switches and Electrical Outlets, Baseboards, Doors, Flooring, Dust Ceiling, Dust Light Fixtures, Light Bulbs, Vents, Shelving, Cabinets, Drawers, Blinds, Windows & Tracks.

Ovens can be difficult to clean but Google has many great Technics you can use to return the oven to its original luster.

Next I would like to highlight some important areas in each room of the house. Lets start with the Living and Dining Room. If you have a fireplace it needs to be vacuumed out and wiped down. The windows need to be cleaned and don’t forget about the tracks. They can be dust dirt and bug collectors so make sure to vacuum and wipe them down. Some areas to highlight in the kitchen are the refrigerator, microwave, oven, stove top, dishwasher and microwave vents. When we turned the house over to you all of these appliances were clean inside and out. They need to be returned to their original condition. Places to remember are the top, back and sides of the refrigerator along with the inside. Ovens can be difficult to clean but Google has many great Technics you can use to return the oven to its original luster. If you are planning to use the ‘Self Cleaning’ option on your oven please wipe all the debris out of the oven before hand. The reason for this is the debris inside can catch on fire during the self cleaning. The other downside to not wiping the debris out is it can become permanently stuck on. Please wipe down the stove top and remove all of the stains. Check the inside of the dishwasher for left over gunk and clean the filter then give the outside a nice wipe down. Lastly if you have a over the stove top microwave it will have metal vents underneath. Remove them and soak them in hot soapy water for 15 min, repeat if necessary.

In the bedrooms you will need to clean the following: Mirrors, closet shelves and doors, walls, light switches and electrical outlets, baseboards, doors, flooring, dust the ceiling and light fixtures, replace any burnt out light bulbs, wipe down vents, shelving, cabinets & drawers, wipe down blinds and clean windows and tracks.
In the laundry room you will need to wipe down the washer & dryer on the outside. Then carefully move the washer and dryer out and clean behind and underneath. Be careful not to scratch up the flooring as you will have to pay for any repairs due to damage. If you have a utility sink in your home it will need to be returned free of stains. When cleaning a utility sink please use a non abrasive cleaner such as a tile cleaner w/bleach or a magic eraser.

” Make sure the home and property is restored to its original condition when we turned the home over to you.”

The bathroom will need to have almost every surface at least wiped down. Some key areas to clean are the shower stall, tub, sink and toilet. The ‘Items to clean in every room’ list applies here too. If your toilet has one of those rings around it you just can’t budge a pumice stone really helps.

Lastly we make our way to the outside of the home. The key thing to remember is what the home and property looked like the day you moved in. It will need to be restored to that same condition. Here is a list of items to check on and clean up if necessary. The decks, sheds and garage need to be free of any personal items, debris, trash, cobwebs. Clean the windows and window tracks, replace the furnace filter and replace any burnt out exterior light bulbs. The lawn will need to be freshly mowed and edged a couple days prior to your move out inspection. Weed the flower beds and prune any over grown shrubs. Make sure to clean any animal feces out of the yard, remove any trash and once again make sure it is restored to its original condition.

If you have any questions or concerns about anything you have seen in this video or any of the Move Out Procedures please feel free to give us a call.

Hey everybody this is Gavin at Smart Pad Property Management. Today I’m coming to you from our latest home in Puyallup. This is a home we will be putting on the market soon but everything really applies to property management as well. I want to talk to you about a few things we can do for you which are pretty different than what most property management companies out there are offering.

We have a full time contractor on staff so whether the project is small maintenance type projects or full scale renovation projects or really anything in between we can facilitate all of those projects. Here at this house we are doing all new floors, interior & exterior paint, new light and plumbing fixtures, new door hardware, installing some new appliances and closing off a couple walls. We have all kinds of projects going on here.

As we prepare to put a house up for rent there is commonly a few little projects that have to be done. We are going to be able to knock those projects out really quickly. During your tenants residency certain maintenance issue will come up, maybe a fence will fall down or a garbage disposal will stop working. Rest assured though as we have people on staff who can quickly go out and handle those situations.

During the rental turn over you will commonly have some paint that needs to be touched up, installation of new flooring or perhaps interior and exterior cleanup. we have you covered there as well!

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions and have a great day!

Hello everyone, let’s talk about what happens during our periodic drive by inspections, what are we looking for and then how do we report that back to you.

“I’m looking to make sure the home is in good condition on the outside.”

First thing – I’m looking to see what condition the roof and gutters are in. Are there any gutters hanging off of the house or any damaged gutters. Is the roof needing a serious cleaning/ mowing. I’m looking to make sure the home is in good condition on the outside.

Other Items I am checking for is the height of the grass. Are the tenants maintaining it as discussed in the Lease. Is there any garbage or excess debris in the yard that was not there when we turned the home over to them. If there is the tenants will be notified immediately by email and if necessary we will call them. You will also be notified on your owners report which you can access any time through the Smart Pad Portal.

“You will also be notified on your owners report which you can access any time through the Smart Pad Portal.”

The next thing I look at is how many cars are in the driveway. If I know there are 2 people living in the home but there are 10 cars in the driveway and on the street I will be contacting them immediately to get the place cleaned up. We will also alert you so you know what is going on and that we are taking the necessary steps to get everything taken care of.

If you ever have any questions about what is going on during the quarterly drive by inspections just log into the Smart Pad Portal. Should you have any questions about the Drive By Inspections please feel free to call us. We are here for all your property management needs!

]]>https://www.smartpadmanagement.com/what-happens-during-our-quarterly-drive-by-inspections/feed/0How to get started with Smart Pad!https://www.smartpadmanagement.com/how-to-get-started-with-smart-pad/
https://www.smartpadmanagement.com/how-to-get-started-with-smart-pad/#respondFri, 25 Jan 2019 10:00:39 +0000https://www.smartpadmanagement.com/?p=812

Let’s talk about how easy it is to get started with our Pacific North West company and using Smart Pad to manage your property. First thing to do is give us a call so we can set up a time to meet you at the property to do a walk through. We will also need to grab keys from you at this time.

“The next item of business will be for you to sit back and relax!”

Once we have these two items out of the way we will need to discuss your terms and conditions for the property. Such as what you would like to collect for the rent, pets or no pets and any other specifics that pertain to your property.

The next item of business will be for you to sit back and relax. You have hired Smart Pad Property Management and we will do the rest of the work. We will notify you if there are any repairs/ maintenance that need to be done to the home. You to be involved in any financial decisions but beyond that we will take care of the rest.

So feel free to give us a call so we can schedule a time to come and look at your property. We look forward to hearing from you!

Here at Smart Pad Property Management we use the Smart Key System on all of our rental homes. Here are some reasons why we have/will install this system on your home. Re-keying locks in between tenants/owners reduces liability for all parties. Taking lock cylinders out and bringing to a hardware store is time consuming and labor intensive. Re-keying locks with a locksmith is expensive. ($120-$150 for 3 doors). Re-keying the locks with our Smart Key is FREE, never pay a locksmith again! All locks can be re-keyed in a matter of seconds. If your tenant accidentally locks themselves out of the home we can go and re-key the lock in a matter of minutes and it’s free!

“Smart Key saves our property manager time which saves you the owner money, it’s a win for everyone.”

* We find that replacing all your locks with Smart Key locks is approximately 1.5 times more expense upfront then re-keying with a locksmith 1 time. If you have 4 keyed doors a locksmith bill would be around $160, you’re looking at around $240 for a Smart Key system. Then you’ll never pay for re-keying again!

* Our Smart Key System pays for itself with 1 lock change! We estimate the initial cost to be 1 1/2 times greater then replacing the locks once.

* We charge a flat fee of $75.00 + Materials to Purchase/Install the Smart Key System for up to 4 doors

If you have any questions about our Smart Key system please reach out to us at any time.